


The Nightmare Begins

by Silver_Centurion



Category: Undertale (Video Game)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Horrortale, Blood, Blood and Gore, Body Horror, Gen, Horror, HorrorTale, Horrortale AU - Freeform, Psychological Horror, Violence, unintentional cannibalism
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-10-19
Updated: 2017-02-06
Packaged: 2018-08-23 11:02:21
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 4
Words: 5,979
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8325274
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Silver_Centurion/pseuds/Silver_Centurion
Summary: You've only just arrived and something is already chasing you. Run. Hide. If he catches you, you will die. If you're lucky you may live long enough to see the sunlight.





	1. Buddy

**Author's Note:**

> Hello! I used to not like Horrortale very much but then I really got into it and discovered the potential. Like played the flash game and read the comic and kinda maybe fell in love kind of potential, and this is what was created by that inspiration! I made the decision to also make it a second person PoV--also something I never really do--but once again inspiration is a finicky mistress!
> 
> Inspired by the works of [sour-apple-studios!](http://sour-apple-studios.deviantart.com/)
> 
> Heads up people! We have fanart! This was graciously submitted to me and I just need to share it with the world. My wonderful Murdering Pupper.  
> [ Click Me!](http://nomnomsun.deviantart.com/art/More-like-HOUNDDOG-641254489?ga_submit_new=10%253A1477014423)

The snow crunches beneath your feet. You’ve become numb to the cold, but each step feels heavy. It gets harder and harder to keep going forward. The forest seems to stretch on forever, and you begin to wonder if you’re even going in a straight line. There has been no notable landmark since you started walking.

You wonder if you’ll freeze to death here, alone, in the woods. The very thought fills you with fear.

You wrap your arms around yourself. You know you should be shivering. Not shivering means hypothermia is setting in, right? You rub your chest to try to warm yourself up. You can’t even feel the cloth of your shirt, but you don’t stop rubbing until you have a little feeling back in your chest, and you try to focus on walking. One step at a time.

A sudden noise startles you. You look up to see a wooden shack that had not been there before. Had it just appeared, or were you so close to death that you had simply not noticed yourself coming upon it?

A figure lay upon the counter of the shack. The structure is ramshackled and splintering, but it reminds you of a toll booth. Perhaps this person could help you?

Hopeful, you approach the shack. You open your mouth to speak, but only a weak whisper comes out. The figure doesn’t stir, so you get closer.

What you see frightens you. The figure is not a person as you had hoped. It isn’t normal. It is a monster. Made of bone and sporting a terrible looking head wound. You grip your chest in fear. You swore you had heard a noise, but this thing is obviously dead. You don’t think anything could live with such a large hole in their skull.

You back away slowly. Whatever had done this could still be nearby and you certainly don’t want to end up like this monster. You hurry past the strange shack and keep your eyes glued to the ground in fear you may see something even more horrifying.

You walk faster. And faster. You don’t want to be here anymore. You want to go home. You want to be warm. The forest swims in your vision as tears well up in your eyes as you start to run. The biting cold stings your face, but you ignore it. You just hope that if you keep running, you’ll find something that will make it okay. Something that will make this pounding in your chest go away. Make this overwhelming feeling of being watched disappear.

You lose your footing and fall into the snow. It’s the last straw. You start to cry. No you don’t want to die here. You don’t want to die in the cold with dead monsters and endless forests. Shakily you wipe your face.

No. You will not die here. You take a deep breath to steady your nerves and get back on your feet. Crying helps. You feel a little better, and you start forward again.

You suddenly feel aware of something. You look up from your feet and your stomach suddenly feels tight. You’re approaching the shack again, but how could that be? You’ve been walking in a straight line. You had made it a point to try to stay on a straight path to prevent this very thing from happening.

God you don’t want to pass that dead monster again. You walk faster and try to keep your eyes averted, but you can’t help but glance.

The shack is empty.

You stop and stare. No that can’t be right. You know this is the same shack, it has to be. It looks exactly the same in every way. But if this is the right shack, then where is the—

“hey there friend.”

A voice comes from behind you and you nearly jump out of your own skin. Whirling around, you feel a lump jump into your throat.

That monster hadn't been dead. It was now stands in front of you in the middle of the path.

It is short and stout and sports a grin that unnerves you. You couldn’t think of many things to smile about in this place.

“you look kinda lost. need a hand?” the monster—is it a skeleton?—extends its bony hand. In it is what looks like a…hotdog?

“how about a spicy hotdog? you’re looking kinda _dead_ on your feet,” the skeleton continues with a raspy chuckle.

It sounds kinda good. Really good actually. Your empty stomach gives a desperate lurch at the sight of something so edible. But you hesitate. There is something wrong with this monster, aside from the obvious fact that it is a monster. It doesn’t blink, but then again maybe it doesn’t need to. It just stares, its smile doesn’t waver even as it speaks.

Unsure of your own voice, you shake your head.

“no? but I poured all my sweat and blood into this thing. come on. take it. i promise it’s a _cut_ above the rest,” the skeleton extends its hand further and you notice the hotdog is steaming. The sight of something so tasty and warm fills you with desperation.

You take a step forward. And then another. The monster doesn’t move and it makes you feel brave. Perhaps this monster really is trying to help? You take another step. Your hand raises and your fingers shake. The monster’s smile broadens.

A terrible smell hits your nose and it makes you stop. You were so overcome with hunger that you didn’t notice the strange stains on the monster’s front. Some are brownish. Others are bright red. You can’t shake the feeling that it looks eerily like blood.

You blink and lower your hand. The monster’s smile wavers for a moment as you shake your head again.

“no?....huh…” the monster tosses the hotdog over its shoulder. It lands uselessly in the snow. “pity. i really had worked real hard on that. maybe it’s not to your taste?”

You feel uneasy by the monster’s tone. It sounds angry?

The monster reaches into his coat and pulls out a heavily damaged ax.

“maybe you need a _**headdog instead**_?”

You shriek as the monster starts forward. Your intuition was right. This monster means to hurt you. You can see the murderous intent in its one glowing eye. You turn on your heel and run straight into the woods. Hopefully weaving through the trees will give you an advantage.

The snow crunches under your feet as you run with what little strength you have left. Each step jars your sore legs and twigs snap and split against you as you run by them. Behind you, you hear nothing.

However you hear something ahead of you. On instinct you duck. The monster’s ax suddenly buries deep in the tree beside you. That swing nearly took your head off, and for a moment you wonder how such a short thing can move so fast.

You duck and weave, each turn the monster’s aim gets closer and closer to actually hitting you. Each flash of metal is accompanied by the monster’s terrible grin out of the corners of your eyes.

You gasp and make a hard right. The blows stall. You're sure that the monster wasn’t expecting that. Your legs wobble unsteadily as you go downhill. The hill gets steeper, and you have to try your hardest to stay upright.

The bottom of the hill is sparse of trees and you barely manage to keep your footing. Then you see it. A gnarly old tree with thick exposed roots. You have no idea if you can even get under there, but you’re willing to try.

You scramble for the tree and fall onto its roots. There’s a gap just big enough for you to squeeze through, and as you slip in you immediately crawl as far back as you can.

The roots are surprisingly spacious, but you fit under here snugly, and the feeling of solid wood behind your back makes you feel safe. You heave in order to catch your breath and you make yourself as small as possible.

Everything went quiet.

Your breath evens out and you give a violent shiver. Had the monster seen you? Was it standing beside the tree? Or did you manage to lose them?

Sudden crunching of snow makes you cover your mouth. The steps are even and slow. Because of where you are, you cannot tell where the foot steps are coming from, but you can tell they are getting closer. You also hear another noise. It sounds like intense scratching. The sound makes you cold, but even colder still as you hear words muttered on the wind.

“ _hush little baby, don’t say a word_.”

The words come from somewhere outside the roots.

“ _papa’s gonna buy you a mockingbird._ ”

It was a little closer. The scratching intensifies.

“ _and if that mockingbird won’t sing…_ ”

The footsteps stop. Your hand tightens on your mouth as your heart hammers in your chest.

“ _ **papa’s gonna make it fucking squeal**_.”

A lone red eye slowly peers in through the roots.

“hey there buddy. is this any way to greet a new pal?”

You scream as the skeleton's arm suddenly shoots between the roots and frantically claws for your legs. Its bony fingers dig into the dirt as the monster tries to force itself into your hiding place.

Seeming to realize it can’t reach you this way, the monster changes its tactic and starts grabbing at the roots instead. With a startling amount of strength, the monster starts ripping at the protective root wall in order to widen the hole. You panic and continue screaming as more and more roots are ripped out of the way. You can now see the monster’s smiling face as it tries to make its way inside.

In a desperate attempt to save your own life, you kick and smack at the skeleton's knobbly hands. It does little good, and the monster grunts as he works his upper body into the hole. It now has the distance it needs to reach you.

But instead of immediately grabbing you, it stops. And stares. Its eye roams over you before it snaps back up to your face.

“not much meat on ya…shame. oh well. you’ll make a decent meatball at least,” the monster said and rose its arm.

The screams catch in your throat as the monster’s fingers extend toward your face. You can’t move, you can’t breathe. You can feel the warmth radiating unnaturally off its fingers as they start to close around your face.

Suddenly a piercing squawk makes everything still. It didn’t come from you.

“SANS?” comes a second voice, piercing and grating in a way that makes your skin crawl. It sounds far away.

The monster in front of you has gone still, but his smile and eye is still trained on you. It’s a moment of stillness. The skeleton's hand still centimeters away from your face, your breath still stalls in your throat. For a moment you think that the monster is just going to kill you anyway.

“SANS! YOU ARE URGENTLY NEEDED!”

The monster slowly lowers its hand.

“it’s your lucky day kid. we’ll have to have our _meat_ and greet later,” the monster rasps and scuttles backwards unnaturally quickly out of the hole, vanishing from your line of sight.

You stay as still as possible. You wait. One second turns into many. You let out a much needed breath and clutch your heart to prevent it from escaping your chest.

You are okay. You are alive.

But you have this sinking feeling that you will not be seeing the last of that monster.

After all, you are stuck in the Underground. Monsters are everywhere, and you may not be so lucky the next time around.


	2. It Begins

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I want to thank everyone for the support and encouragement! I was so happy to hear that many people were enjoying this that I decided to write another chapter.
> 
> I'm getting an idea where I would like this to go. The more I write it, the more I get the image of the ending in my mind. I hope I can keep it entertaining for everyone!
> 
> Please enjoy chapter 2. It's a tad shorter, but I have a feeling that future chapters are going to get lengthier.

You don’t know when you fell asleep until your eyes are suddenly shooting open. You're met with darkness and fear grips you. You extend your arms and feel around in a frantic attempt to ground yourself, and your fingers come into contact with moist earth and long roots.

You take a deep breath to steady your racing heart. You remember where you are. You’re still under the tree. The tree has done its job and kept you safe and surprisingly warm. It’s nicely insulated within the root system, and you can feel the life in your limbs again as the cold is chased away.

Your eyes adjust to the darkness and you see light filtering in through the large hole in the roots. Terror grips you as you remember what transpired earlier. You can still see that monster’s unnerving smile as it tried to reach for you.

It would be best if you plug up the hole, but with limited resources you can only manage to shift some of the smaller roots over it. It is a minor improvement, but it makes you feel safer. After all, you are in a tiny hole with only one exit. If that monster wants back in then it will have to come in through this hole. The thought terrifies you, but knowing that you will see it coming makes it a little better.

Only a little.

A sigh escapes your lips and you hug your knees. At least you aren’t cold anymore, but now you are trapped; not to mention still terribly hungry. Your stomach aches now and you desperately wish for a bit of something—anything—to eat.

You wonder how long it has been since you last ate. For some reason you can’t remember. You remember trekking up the mountain, and you can remember when you fell. But after that it is an odd blur that you have trouble focusing on.

Come to think of it, you can’t even remember how long you’ve been in the Underground. Days? Hours? You can’t remember!

Tangling your fingers in your hair, you let out a choked sob. Something must be wrong with this forest. This air. Something has to be messing with you for you to think like this. You pull at your hair. The pain makes you feel better. It lets you know that you are still here. You are real.

But what about this world? Is this real? That monster, these trees. Are they real? Surely they aren’t. That _thing_ can’t possibly exist. And yet you remember it clear as day. The sound of its bones as they ground together, the smell of the rotting blood on its shirt, and the unnatural scratching sound that always accompanied the monster all seemed to be permanently engraved into your memory.

If this is just nightmare then you hope someone will wake you up, because you have a sinking feeling that you may not make it back to the surface alive.

Soft voices on the wind catch your attention. You choke up immediately and cover your mouth less you make any noise. They don’t sound close to you, but you don’t want to risk being found. What if it is another monster? If it is anything like the last one, then you want nothing to do with it.

The voices quickly come within earshot.

“this is the place i think.”

Your blood suddenly feels frozen. You know that voice.

“ALL THE WAY OUT HERE?” Came a second, more shrill, voice. It sounds familiar. “BUT SANS THIS IS SO FAR FROM YOUR STATION.”

“yeah i know. i thought i could catch it.”

“NO WONDER YOU CAME HOME SO TIRED! SANS YOU SHOULDN’T EXPEND YOUR ENERGY LIKE THAT.”

“gimme a break pap. I thought I would be able to catch it.”

“WELL THAT MAY BE THE CASE BUT WASTING ENERGY IS BAD! YOU TOLD ME THAT YOURSELF. NEXT TIME JUST LET IT BE.”

“like hell i will pap—“

“LANGUAGE SANS!”

“if i see it again i’m going straight for the head. i’m too hungry to care if i waste energy trying to catch it.”

“…SANS WHY DON’T YOU HAVE SOME OF MY SPAGHETTI?”

“what? no pap that’s yours. besides i know the human is around here somewhere. i just have to remember which tree its hiding under.”

You hang on their every word but they suddenly grow quiet. You can hear their footsteps as they wade through the snow. It is strange how loud they suddenly sound. It is like the forest went silent. Not that it had been very loud to begin with, but now you notice.

“SANS?”

“….”

The monster—was sans its name?—makes an odd noise under its breath. The sound reminds you of a cat yowling, only quieter.

“i can’t remember where the human is hiding.”

You hear a deep, furious, scratching. It makes you recoil. It sounds so close all of a sudden.

“SANS PLEASE STOP SCRATCHING! IT WORRIES ME WHEN YOU DO THAT!”

“pap i can’t help it. this damn itch won’t go away. no matter how far i dig i just can’t reach it.”

“SANS PLEASE! DON’T WORRY WE’LL FIND THE HUMAN! JUST PLEASE STOP SCRATCHING. THE HOLE IN YOUR SKULL IS BIG ENOUGH AS IT IS. WE DON’T NEED IT GETTING ANY BIGGER.”

The scratching slowly stops. You feel bile rise up the back of your throat. The image of the skeleton digging at his own skull makes your skin crawl. You’re glad you can’t see it.

“……okay bro…i’ll try to ignore it for now. but i know the itch won’t go away until i know that human is dead.”

“WE’LL FIND IT! AND WHEN WE DO WE’LL FEED IT A NICE MEAL BEFORE ITS UNTIMELY DEATH!”

“heh….yep. you know i hear the best way to a humans heart is through their stomach.”

“WOWIE REALLY??”

“personally i find that going through the ribcage is much more direct.”

The monster’s footsteps begin again and they come closer. You watch with horror as the light filtering through the gaps of the roots is slowly blocked out. You can hear their feet moving through the snow. One of them—you don’t know which—is breathing heavily. It strikes you as strange. It can’t be sans. That monster is a skeleton. Perhaps it is the other monster?

“DO ANY OF THESE TREES SEEM FAMILIAR?”

The monster’s voice is so loud this close. You cover your ears in an attempt to blot out the sound.

“this one kinda does…”

Sans hums and you think he’s talking about your tree. You pray he isn’t, but the pessimistic voice inside of your head is whispering you details of your own death.

“SANS? ARE YOU ALRIGHT?”

The other monster sounds…upset?

“yeah pap.”

“YOU DON’T SEEM OKAY.”

The light comes back through the roots as the monsters move on. Their footsteps fade.

“just kinda tired. you could say that i’m almost _dead_ on my feet.”

“SANS DON’T JOKE ABOUT THAT.”

“aw pap of _corpse_ i wouldn’t joke about something so serious.”

“SANS!!”

You listen as their voices fade away completely, seeming to go back the way they came. You let out a deep exhale and press your palms to your eyes. That was close. You are relieved to live for a few more hours, but now you are faced with another crisis.

The monsters are looking for you. Very **actively** looking.

Sans seems to be the one that wants you the most. The other—was its name Pap?—seemed interested but indifferent. Why do they want you so badly? You just can’t understand why something would so actively hunt you.

You press on your eyes until you see stars. You don’t know what to do. Sans is looking for you, and you have choices to make.

Do you stay here and starve or do you try and make a break for it?

You think about the latter option. You think you will be able to see their footsteps in the snow. That will make it easier for you to know where they are. But what if you're wrong? What if they find you anyway? You don’t think you’ll be as lucky the second time around. This tree seems to be your best bet for staying alive.

And you can’t lie to yourself. The tree makes you feel safe.

You decide. You are unwilling to take the risk of running right now. You feel that the best approach will be to just sit and wait. If sans can’t even remember what tree you are under, then maybe you will get lucky and it’ll forget you even exist.

Yes.

No matter what you will not leave this tree.

You will not die here.

At least not today, anyway.


	3. A Truce?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello! Sorry for the lack of updating. Funnily enough this chapter has been in my folder for some time. I planned on adding more, but as I came back I realized it was at a good stopping point!

It is impossible to tell what time it is in the Underground. With no sun to show you, you can only guess that it is very late based on the throbbing in your head. The trees are still, there is no wind here, and there is no other sound in the forest except for your own breathing. It feels unnatural, but you refuse to acknowledge it. It’s been hours since the monsters had passed through, and the silence sounds like it’s going to stretch on forever.

Shifting slowly, you realize just how cramped you are in this tiny space. Your joints ache, and your head is throbbing from a mixture of stress and hunger. Is there even any food here? A quick look around answers that question. Unless you decide to start gnawing on the roots there is nothing to eat.

It’s still so quiet outside. Risking a peek, you gently move the roots to the side and peer out into the forest. You see nothing except for old footprints. One pair rather is small, and the other is much larger in comparison.

That must have been sans and Pap’s footprints. This Pap monster must be huge compared to sans if these footprints are anything to go by. The footprints look as long as your waist is wide. Suddenly sans doesn’t sound so bad.

With a huff you sit back into your little nook. The dirt is surprisingly dry and you're thankful. The addition of dampness would just make an already uncomfortable situation even worse.

You laugh humorlessly under your breath. Being thankful for not being wet? Somehow that seems petty. Your conscious tells you that you should be thankful that you're alive! Being wet is a miniscule problem compared to _death_ , but you can’t find much else to be thankful for. You are hungry, scared, and, worst of all, alone.

Your heart clenches. There is a very real possibility that you will die out here. Will anyone even notice? Will you die and simply cease to exist, without any memories or mentions of your name? The thought horrifies you. You never realized how horrifying being _forgotten_ could sound.

No! Thinking like this will get you nowhere. You are dry, safe, and very much alive. Maybe if you focus on that then your future won’t seem so bleak? You might survive as long as you try to keep positive.

Suddenly there is a voice on the wind. A yell perhaps and you clutch your knees in an attempt to make yourself small. Its familiar shrill quality reminds you of that Pap monster. Is it in the woods?

“HUMAN?” A call echoes off the massive trees.

It is Pap. Its voice was very identifiable.

“HUMAN?” It calls again, this time it is closer.

Its tone makes you curious instead of afraid. It sounds like it is looking for you, but not hunting you. What hunter calls out for their prey? No, it sounds more like the monster is a friend or family member calling for someone who is lost.

“HUMAN? PLEASE COME OUT!”

Your fingers dig into your leg. Why does the monster sound so desperate? And so genuinely worried? No! It must be a trick. You heard those monsters—just a few hours ago—talking about your death. There is no way that they had a change of heart so quickly.

“PLEASE HUMAN! I BROUGHT YOU SOME SPAGHETTI! PLEASE COME OUT AND EAT.”

Your stomach lurches at the mere mention of food. You feel an overwhelming urge to do as the monster says, but your mind knows better. This is a trick.

Still….you chance a peek. You make yourself as low as possible and you peer through the roots of your shelter to get a good look at this ‘Pap’. What you see is a surprise.

It’s tall. Much taller than sans and yourself. It is a skeleton—perhaps?—with a boney shape that reminds you of sans, but that is where the similarities end. Pap towers over everything, with long legs and arms, and beady black sockets with no hint of an iris.

“HUMAN?” Pap calls again, stopping to look around. As he faces you, you can see his snaggled, flat, teeth.

While terrifying in his own right, somehow you are less afraid of him then sans. Perhaps it is because, despite being made of bone the same as sans, his features seem lighter. More welcoming even. Strange. How can a monster look inviting?

“I CAN HEAR YOU HUMAN,” Pap says and you feel your heart stop. “MY HEARING IS MUCH BETTER THAN MY POOR BROTHERS. I CAN HEAR YOU, BUT DO NOT FRET! I PROMISE I WILL NOT HURT YOU RIGHT NOW. SANS TOLD ME YOU ARE THIN, AND I HATE THAT!”

Pap holds up what looks like a plate. You can’t see what it holds, but you can see steam rising off of it.

“PLEASE EAT. THIS IS FOR YOU,” Pap gestures to the plate and continues, “AND I PROMISE THIS IS NO TRICK OR TRAP. I WOULD NOT USE SOMETHING AS SACRED AS SPAGHETTI AS A TRICK! THIS I, THE GREAT PAPYRUS, ASSURE YOU!”

Papyrus places the plate down on a small mound of snow. The skeleton, and more importantly the food, is maybe about 10 yards away. Papyrus huffs—how can a skeleton breathe?—and places his long hands on his hips. Seeming content with his setup, Papyrus turns to leave.

But he doesn’t leave right away. Instead he speaks again.

“PLEASE…DON’T HOLD IT AGAINST US, HUMAN. I’M SURE YOU ARE SPLENDED! PERHAPS EVEN NICE! BUT WE HAVE OUR ORDERS. AND WE HAVE OUR….NEEDS. SANS WILL START LOOKING FOR YOU IN THE MORNING, SO YOU HAVE SOME TIME, BUT…PLEASE…PLEASE JUST GIVE UP QUIETLY. I HAVE ASKED HIM TO MAKE IT AS PAINLESS AS POSSIBLE.”

Papyrus pauses, and his voice falters. He seems distraught, but only for a moment.

“BUT IN THE MEANTIME, PLEASE EAT! I MADE IT SPECIAL FOR YOU, AND I’D HATE FOR IT TO GET COLD! IT WILL START SNOWING SOON, SO BE SURE TO EAT IT ALL! SPAGHETTI DOESN’T KEEP WELL IN THE COLD!”

And with that, Papyrus turns on his giant heel and marches back the way he came. You watch as his figure shrinks, and then finally disappears among the trees.

Somehow you feel colder than before, left with such a warning fills you with fear. You clutch your arms as you repeat what Papyrus said in your mind. You can’t tell if that was a threat or not, but either way it disturbs you. Papyrus seems to be an ally, at least somewhat, but it was obvious that he is not going to save you. He is not going to keep sans from looking for you.

You look up at where the plate is still perched. Steam is rising off of it slowly, tempting you. Saliva gathers in your mouth, but you quickly swallow it. No! You refuse to fall for such a trick! Your mind tells you that the moment you step outside something will get you. Sans is most likely hiding in the bushes, waiting for you to climb out of your hiding space.

But the promise of food…fresh, still steaming, food makes you question your own paranoia. What if Papyrus is just trying to help? It is in a creepy and frightening way sure, but if this offer is genuine than it may be your only chance to eat for who knows how long.

Snow gently starts to fall by the time you make up your mind.

You're too hungry to care.


	4. Lunch Time!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Two updates in one day? Yep! I felt productive before work, so here's the last short chapter. After this stuff's gonna get heavy and lengthy!

The snow is cold. Bare skin is not meant to handle such temperatures. It stings, the small ice crystals feeling more like shards of glass more than frozen water.

You gulp down the lump that forms in your throat as you gently crawl out of your hiding place. The plate is still within your sight, and you keep your focus on that instead of the nagging in the back of your mind.

_This is a trap. He’s out there. He’s going to catch you._

As you straighten, you take a look around. The forest is still barren and silent, but that didn’t mean something could be lurking about. You decide to keep as quiet as possible as you take your first tentative steps forward.

Using only the tips of your toes, you step into the old prints left behind by sans. This way you won’t make any new prints, and you feel smart for having thought of such an idea. If you play this right, the new snow will cover these tracks completely and the monsters will have even less of a clue of where you may be hiding.

Sans has some tiny feet. They are only about half the size of your own and do not go into the snow very deep. Is sans lighter than he looks?

Funny how the mind tends to wander when under stress. Here you are worrying about a skeletons weight when there is plenty more to worry about.

All but falling to your knees, you stare down at the plate. It felt like a marathon to get there, but now that you are here you hesitate. There it is. Food. Slightly warm, delicious looking food. The smell hits your nose and it makes you want to cry. It’s herb-y, a little spicy even, and while the portion wasn’t as big as you previously imagined it still looks like it will be plenty.

Taking the provided fork, you shovel a large portion into your mouth. The taste is indescribable!

Coughing, you clutch your throat as you try not to gag. The spaghetti tastes nothing like how it smells. There is a notable rancid taste to the food as you force yourself to swallow. Odd small chunks of _something_ slide down your throat and catch on the flesh, making you cough even harder. By the time you actually swallow the mouthful, your eyes are watering with hot tears that burn your cold cheeks.

It’s terrible, and yet you go in for a second bite. The rancid taste hits you again—albeit less so than the first bite—and you swallow without chewing. That makes it more tolerable, and a harsh shiver rolls down your spine as a slimy aftertexture rolls down your throat.

You can’t finish this. There’s no way you will be able to keep it down if you continue, and you stare at the ‘food’ forlornly. You want to finish it, you _need_ to finish it, but your stomach is already protesting.

All of the stress from the past few days suddenly erupts into a fury. Why is this happening to you? What did you do to deserve this? This isn’t fair! You are a good person, you have never done anything to earn this fate, and here you are eating God knows what in the middle of a forsaken forest!

Against better judgment, you yell in frustration and throw the plate as far as you can. It splatters against a tree so satisfyingly, and as it slides down into the snow you feel your stomach give another painful lurch.

Maybe that hadn't been such a good idea. No, that had been a terrible idea! You idiot, that was your only food!

Scrambling up, your legs numb from kneeling in the snow, you wobbled over to the assaulted food item. Most of it was now stuck to the frozen side of the tree. Scraping it off was your only option for getting that off to eat, but there was still a handful on the plate. You pick it up, already trying to psyche yourself up to eat it, but you instantly drop the plate with a soft gasp.

No that can’t be what you are thinking it is. No, no no no no.

You lean down to peer at the plate. There, barely noticeable among the sauce, looked like—

Quickly backing away, you try your best to keep from vomiting. Hair. It looked like hair in the food. Thick and brown, so shockingly like a humans that it makes your imagination go wild. What on earth had you been eating? And those hard bits from earlier, what had those been?

You barely feel the cold anymore as you bolt for your tree. There is a burning sensation in your gut as you clutch your middle. Don’t vomit. Don’t vomit. Don’t vomit. Tears roll down your cheeks again and your breaths become labored. You curl up back in your little nook, uncaring that you made huge tracks in the snow.

It takes minutes for you to calm your breathing, but your stomach is another story. It lurches and rolls, sloshing the unknown contents around and making you feel dizzy. At least you aren’t hungry anymore, you think to yourself bitterly. Trap or not, that had been worse than anything sans might have cooked up. Sans will kill you, but apparently this Papyrus would feed you unknown animals(?) in a guise of safe food. Somehow that is worse to you. Fleeing for your life you can understand, but this psychological stress was something you are not prepared for.

Taking deep breaths, and leaning back against the dirty roots, you feel your lids becoming heavy. Your eyes burn, and despite the anxiety rolling through your body in waves you feel the urge to sleep. If you sleep maybe this whole nightmare will go away, at least for a little while.

But you can’t sleep. Papyrus’ words still ring in the back of your mind.

_Sans will come looking for you in the morning._

Morning. That could be hours or minutes away. The darkness of the forest makes telling time impossible, and there is no way you can tell when ‘morning’ is. Your eyes dart up to the hole that leads into your hiding place. No longer small, the hole is wide and rather gaping. Suddenly your hiding spot doesn’t feel so safe, and a chill runs up your spine when you remember how easily sans fit into that hole last time.

If he finds you, there will be nothing to stop him from just grabbing you and dragging you out from under the tree to your death. But what could you do? The throbbing in your legs told you that anymore walking or running might not be the wisest idea. You barely had any strength to keep your eyes open, let alone try to put any sort of feasible distance between you and those monsters.

But you have to do something. You left so much evidence outside that it would be unlikely that the snow will cover enough of it. Sans will take one look at your tree and know you are down there.

You can’t keep your eyes open. Your body feels unnaturally heavy as you slump to the ground. Just a nap. Just a little sleep to ward off this soreness in your body, and then you will be on your way. No more hiding under a tree and living on the thought that you may or may not have just eaten something horrible.

Just a nap. Just a rest.


End file.
